Efficacy of diode laser in the management of periodontal disease among hemodialysis patients - a single blinded randomized clinical trial

Background: This study aims to evaluate periodontal probing depth, relative attachment level, and the simplified oral hygiene index before and after treatment with a 3-month follow-up period. Methods and materials: This study included 33 patients. The sample was divided into 21 patients who only had gingivitis and were treated with subgingival and supragingival scaling, and 12 patients who had periodontitis. Sites containing periodontal pockets were randomly divided into two treatment groups and treated with two different methods: Treatment method A: Scaling + root planing. Treatment method B: Scaling + root planing + application of an 810 nm diode laser (Pioon) to those sites. The laser was applied using a 300-micron optical fiber in continuous mode at 1.2 watts, with a power density of 1698.5 W/cm² at the fiber tip, ensuring precise irradiation within periodontal pockets. All patients’ oral health was assessed with the Simplified Oral Hygiene Index. Statistical analysis was performed using Wilcoxon signed-ranks and Mann-Whitney tests. Results: The results showed significant improvement in oral health and values of probing depth and relative attachment level in both treatment methods after three months (p-value < 0.001). The average change in probing depth was 0.78 ± 0.42 mm in group A, and 1.2 ± 0.47 mm in group B, with a difference of 0.42 mm favoring group B. Conclusion: Within the limits of this study, we conclude that applying diode laser to sites containing periodontal pockets positively enhanced healing and reduced the depth of these pockets after three months. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2025.